AOPA... bottom line in my opinion, the services, resources, lobbying power, etc... you get for the PRICE, is hands down, something you can find nowhere else. They did not "cave" to the user fees, they did not stop until the legislation they decided to back after much fighting DID NOT introduce user fees, so there is still no foot in the door from that perspective. They also know that the battle would probably be in vain if they give a little somewhere, and where they did is along the same lines as our current funding system, fuel taxes. They still fight for our GA rights and safety is always top tier. (See their recent win against backgroud checks in NY for student pilots). If there is money management and corruption problems that later cause mis-appropriation of the funds, the AOPA certainly isn't to blame for that.
I agree that AOPA Pilot magazine is very similiar to many car magazines in showing what we love to see as far as technology and new/shiny stuff. But they also include a good dose of safe flying tips and articles as well and interesting legal tidbits, etc. I think their Flight Training publication is perhaps one of the most valuable, while it does tend to repeat to a degree and stay somewhat elementary at times, it beats into us the fundamentals of safety and profeciency, which is something any pilot can benefit from. And what plane do many of their articles mention and/or focus on? The 150 and similiar practical light trainers. So far they have kept the higher end TAA stuff an entirely seperate section. The annual plane giveaway a waste of user money? Much of the plane is as much advertisement for the avionics and restoration companies as anything, I've a feeling not as much AOPA money gets thrown into that as some might think.
The EAA's famous Oshkosh airshow is where much of the latest high dollar, big company equipment gets it's debut. Does this make the EAA not true to it's cause? No.
While I would love to see this club grace it's pages, I'm sure they are innundated with literally thousands and thousands of similiar requests from just about everyone in aviation. I still consider my AOPA membership a invaluable resource at an extremely reasonable price. I still have to find a single way AOPA has ever "betrayed" us as 150 flyers, even if we aren't always their top focus.
My $.02
p.s. I think THIS CLUB is what embodies the roots of what we all are as pilots and what we want out of it. Our membership base of 747 pilots to mechanics, to just about everything non-aviation related as well. And for now, that's what I'll put a majority of my "why we do it" stock in, not any of the magazine companies.
Last edited by Willymopit; 08/04/07 03:01 AM.
